Where to get racing weights?

[pennandh]

Probably a bit of an odd question, but my riding instructor has suggested putting a lead weight (like you'd use in a weight cloth for racing, or for eventing in days gone by) in each boot to try to discourage my right heel (attached to the leg with a wonky knee) from coming up when I go to put my leg on (it's a lot less of an issue when I'm riding a forward horse with a deep girth, but as I don't have one of my own at the moment, that's not always a viable solution).

Perfectly willing to give it a go, but whilst I can find plenty of places that sell weight cloths without the attendant lead, I don't seem to be able to locate the actual weights themselves. Does anyone have any suggestions of UK sellers of such items?

 

[Steerpike]

We used to get lead(like roofing lead which us slightly flexible) from places like b and q and cut it into small 1lb rectangles/squares

 

[Kizzy2004]

Diving weights, decathlon sell them or you can get them on eBay or Amazon

 

[Red-1]

No help on the lead front, but I think having a schooling whip and being disciplined to use it instead of drawing the leg up would be more effective.

It sounds like you are just doing that in a heroic effort to make the horse respond. I know this, as Rigsby has me do the same . I have found the schooling whip to flick him if he is not responsive, followed by several transitions, so he really learns to listen to the leg first time, is the way to go.

I know if I had weighted boots, the horse still wouldn't respond, so I would still draw my leg up - it would just take more effort

 

[pennandh]

No help on the lead front, but I think having a schooling whip and being disciplined to use it instead of drawing the leg up would be more effective.

It sounds like you are just doing that in a heroic effort to make the horse respond. I know this, as Rigsby has me do the same . I have found the schooling whip to flick him if he is not responsive, followed by several transitions, so he really learns to listen to the leg first time, is the way to go.

I know if I had weighted boots, the horse still wouldn't respond, so I would still draw my leg up - it would just take more effort

I totally get where you're coming from, and thank you for the suggestion, but I literally never school without a schooling whip (which normally lives in my right hand to back up the dodgy leg). I think the root of the issue is that that leg basically has no lateral stability at the knee, so putting my leg on directly inwards (like I should be doing) actually really hurts unless I happen to have been lucky with the combination of saddle design and horse's conformation and don't actually have to move my leg much.

Which is why that heel comes up a bit (about an inch total - it's not appalling or anything) when I have something that needs leg on, because it adjusts the angle of the pressure on the bad knee. Hence the attempts at weird solutions. I mean, I'm honestly not that sure it'll work, but it's something to try until I'm in a situation where I can actually have a consistent mount that I can put the groundwork into and buy a saddle for that actually helps me, rather than making life harder.

 

[Kat]

Reading your last post I think using weights could increase the strain on your bad leg and as such could be a really bad idea.

What about trying some mechanical horse lessons to help with alignment and try to teach you how to use yourself as well as possible?